Thursday, December 30, 2010

Desertification causes flooding in northern Nigeria

Mustapha Suleiman in AllAfrica.com via the Daily Trust (Nigeria): Desertification has been described as one of the major causes of the perennial flooding in some Northern states which lead to loss of farmlands and crops. It also causes sand dunes to occupy productive land resulting in high cost of food items such as maize, yams, beans, millet, sorghum, potatoes, tomatoes and pepper grown in Northern Nigeria.

This assertion was contained in a lead paper presentation by Professor Olanrewaju Fagbohun entitled, "Climate change and desertification: Threat to food security in Nigeria, " during the international climate change and desertification summit held recently at Usmanu Danfodio University, Sokoto.

Prof. Faghohun further stated that the high cost of cattle is also the fallout of desertification which has led to mass extinction of cattle heads denied grazing lands, adding that desertification also diminishes biological diversity. "Climate change will also affect the ability of individuals to use food effectively by altering the conditions for food safety….”

June 2009 – At the studios of Cleanskies TV, I was interviewed about the costs of climate change, and discussed adaptation efforts underway in the US and around the world.

May 2009 – I helped draft the scenarios for Rising Waters, a multistakeholder scenarios effort focused on climate change adaptation in the Hudson Valley. The final report is now completed and available here.

May 2008 – I reviewed two books on climate and energy in the New Leader magazine: James Gustave Speth's The Bridge at the Edge of the World: Capitalism, the Environment and Crossing from Crisis to Sustainability, plus Robert Bryce's Gusher of Lies: The Dangerous Delusions of Energy Independence.

January 2008 – A very local paper covers a very global issue.... The Litchfield County Times in northwestern Connectictut ran an article in January 2008 about Carbon-Based.

Now available: Climate Change Adaptation in 2011

A selection of my writings from 2011, plus some of my posts, as well as links... all focusing on the risks of climate change